UFC 129: St-Pierre vs. Shields earned Toronto tourism and local businesses about $40 million, the figure is a “conservative estimate” according to UFC’s Director of Canadian Operations Tom Wright, who suggests it may increase when the official economic impact report is released this August.

Overall, Moneris Solutions, Canada’s largest credit and debit card processor, issued a report last month showing a substantial increase in dollars spent in the city on Saturday, April 30, the day of the highly-anticipated Toronto event. Restaurants enjoyed a 19.2 per cent jump in dollars spent compared week-over-week. Similarly, bars and pubs experienced a 15.7 per cent increase — confirming that in addition to the 55,724 fans at the Rogers Centre, many more watched the popular event outside their home.

The Moneris report also showed a sizable rise in retail spending from people who made their way to the downtown core. Apparel and sporting goods stores saw a 41.3 per cent and a 33 per cent jump in sales respectively. And many people travelled to Toronto to experience the UFC in person, as evidenced by the 20.3 per cent rise in dollars spent at hotels, says the report. “Toronto’s hotel occupancy rates were in the high 90s — which doesn’t usually happen in April,” notes Wright.

About William Smith

After watching the first Ultimate Fighting Championship I became instantly hooked. I’ve been a huge fan of the sport of MMA ever since. Haven’t missed a UFC event & thanks to fight pass I’ve witnessed some of the all time greatest fighter & athletes the sport through Pride, Strikeforce, WEC, Glory, Pacrase, EliteXC…………..

I resently joined MMA-paradise.com & will use this site to continue to bring the latest news from the world of MMA to all our loyal followers.

Jamie J Yetman – Founder of MMA-Paradise.com

Jamie J Yetman (1984-2016)

The world has lost a huge fan of MMA. Jamie J Yetman (founder of mma-paradise.com) has been taken from us far too soon.

In memory of Jamie the site will be continuing to provide fans with updates from the world of mixed martial arts. We’re honored to take this task on to keep the memory of one of the biggest fan of the world’s best sport alive.

MMA Paradise will strive to bring you the biggest stories in the world of MMA, as well as coverage of all the events put on by UFC. We think that’s how Jamie would have wanted it.